House Democrats Have More Potent Options Than Impeachment - The Atlantic
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
The fight between President Donald Trump and House Democrats over the House’s investigations of the president has escalated into what several outletsnow describe as an “all-out war.” Most commentators believe that House Democrats are powerless in the face of the Trump administration’s defiance. Litigation to enforce congressional subpoenas will stall in the courts, while any attempt to remove Trump from office with impeachment will die in the Senate. Voters are losing their patience with investigations that produce no results. But if the House backs off, Trump will declare victory, and future presidents may conclude that they are immune from oversight. The options for Democrats seem bleak.
House Democrats, however, have an ace up their sleeve. Actually, a pair of aces: the power to shut down the government and the power to trigger a debt default. These options are far more potent than impeachment because the Democrats do not need the support of Republicans to use them. The problem is that the options may be too powerful: If used unwisely, they could hurt the Democrats—and the country—more than Trump. To prevail, the Democrats must play their cards shrewdly.
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Excerpt from the article published by The Atlantic. Click the seed link to read the full analysis.
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Will the Democrats go full on TEA Party? The threat of another government shutdown or the threat of a debt default would certainly distract the country from the Democrat's use of criminal investigations for political purposes. And Democrats could crash the economy and take that accomplishment away from Trump during the campaign.
How far are Democrats willing to go just to win elections?
These investigations were not for political purposes.
This 'president' is not above the law.
The democrats never shut down the government.
This 'president' has when he didn't get his way.
The problem is that the options may be too powerful: If used unwisely, they could hurt the Democrats—and the country—more than Trump. To prevail, the Democrats must play their cards shrewdly.
The Democrats don't have a track record of acting wisely and shrewdly. The way they are acting lately, it appears that they are willing to go too far, and we on the right are willing to let them. The voters are becoming weary of all the left wing drama and politically driven chaos.
In case of a government shutdown or a debt default, it's the Democrats who will be getting the blame.
Democrats have shot themselves in both feet and are looking for new targets. Voters are weary of nothing being done by Congress. If neither party is going to govern then why should either party hold a political majority in Congress?
Congress has become nothing more than a finger-lickin' Kentucky chicken frat party.
This has been going on between the two parties since Clinton and "Whitewater". Then Bush and the election, then Obama and the birthers. Frankly, I am sick of it. It has been nothing but divisive.
We need independents to denounce Donald Trump.
Who is the nation's most prominent independent? Let that person say the Trump presidency is intolerable and then we can go from there. All "silence" does is help to normalize this travesty.
How are you going to do that? More and more democrats and independents are going over to Trump.
Your imagination doesnt count.
Actually the independents need to denounce both parties. Neither party has done anything for we the people in a very long time and neither deserve our support anymore. But unfortunately too many people have become too tribal and defend their side against the unbelievers on the other side.
If you think otherwise, show us the numbers.
Richard Nixon and Watergate made the threat of impeachment a potent political weapon. Nixon was forced out of office, after all. In the end, the actual crimes were misdemeanors committed against a political party.
The alleged collusion between Trump and Russia was framed to evoke Watergate. And Bill Clinton wasn't impeached over Whitewater; he was impeached over perjury concerning an oval office blow job. Even Clinton's impeachment tried to evoke the political theater of Watergate.
The only thing giving the President any hope of re-election is that some people imagine that he (rather than the Fed) is responsible for the booming economy. Incredibly, President Trump seems intent on sabotaging the economy with his manic economic and diplomatic tantrums, just before the election.
So it's a matter of timing. If Pelosi thinks the President is going to self-destruct, she won't burn any political capital on impeachment.
As mentioned elsewhere, most of the reliable experts predict his easy reelection.
Why would anyone want to elect a Democrat...for any office? The numbers are not with left.
Seriously?